Elastic-tread horseshoe.



No. 693,573. Patented Fab. m, I902. m. .1. SINNOTT.

ELASTIC TREAD HORSESHOE.

(Application filed. Mar. 18, 1901.)

(No Model.)

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MARTIN J. SINNOTT, OF BROOKLYN, NE\V YORK, ASSIGNOR TO THE EX- PANDINGTREAD COMPANY, OF NE /V YORK, N. Y., A CORPORATION OF NEW JERSEY.

ELASTlC-TREAD HORSESHOE.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent NO. 693,573, dated February18, 1902. Application filed March 18, 1901. $erial No. 51,672. (Nomodel.)

To aZZ whom, it may concern Be it known that I, MARTIN J. SINNOTT, acitizen of the United States,residing at Brooklyn, in the county ofKings and State of New York, have invented certain new and usefulImprovements in Elastic-Tread Horseshoes, of which the following is afull, clear, and exact description, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, forming part of this specification.

My invention relates to horseshoes in which an elastic tread is providedto relieve the horse from jars and to prevent slipping; and theimprovements relate particularly to that certain novel and useful methodof retaining the packing in place when the shoe is in use, to behereinafter particularly pointed out and claimed.

In the use of elastic treads for horseshoes in which a packing of rubberor other suitable elastic material is inserted in asuitable groove orgrooves in the base of the shoe great difficulty has been experienced inproperly securing the packing in the groove. Under the rough usage towhich all such shoes must be subjected while in use the packing ispressed away from the metal edges of the groove and dirt is ground inbetween the rubber and the groove and forms a wedge to pry out therubber. \Vith rubber packing also the pressure on the rubber as it comesin contact with the ground tends to elongate the rubber strip or strips,and thus to force the rubber out of the groove. A great many differentmethods have been employed to secure the packing in the groove, but noneof them in use have been found to be entirelysatisfactory. Screws ornails inserted through the packing and into the body of the shoe weakenthe packing at the points of insertion and very soon pull through therubber. Plates secured to the base of the rubber packing with lugs to beattached to the body of the shoe pull away from the packing, and inthose cases where the packing is sought to be clamped between the sideedges of the shoe in various ways the elasticity of the packing preventsa permanent attachment for the rubber in the groove. It is desirablealso in these elastic-tread horseshoes that the packing should beinserted and ing removed therefrom.

secured in place after the horseshoe is fitted to the foot, so that theshoes and the packing can be sold separately, the shoe heated and fittedto the foot, and then the packing secured in place. In order toaccomplish this, it is evident that some means must be devised underwhich the packing can be readily and easily secured by any horseshoerthat may have occasion to make use of the elastietread shoe.

It is the purpose, therefore, of my inveution to provide a simple,cheap, and effective fastening for the rubber packing, and also in thesame connection to prevent the elongation of the packing under pressure,as above noted.

In the drawings, Figure l is a bottom plan view of my improved horseshoewith the pack- Fig. 2 is a perspective view of the packing, showing thefastening devices. Fig. 3 is across-section of the shoe, taken on theline 3 3 of Fig. 1. Fig. 4 is a section taken on the line at 4 of Fig.1.

A is the body of the shoe, made of the usual material and provided witha groove Ct on the undersurface, preferably extending from heel to heel,and preferably also of the same width and depth throughout.

B is a strip of packing for the insertion in this groove, made of rubberor other suitable elastic material. The groove for the packing is alsopreferably made with side walls, which converge or are beveled, so thatthe base of the groove is wider than at the top, and the rubber packing,which is preferably rectangular in cross'section, does not quite fillout the groove, allowing room for the packing to expand laterally undercompression whileiu use, so as to prevent the wearing down of the rubberto a level with the metal surface of the shoe.

1) b are slots formed in the base of the groove through the shoe toallow, for the insertion of the tongues or prongs c c on the plates (1(7. metal and they are secured to the side wall of the rubber packing inany suitable way; but the preferable way and the method I have adoptedin practice is to lay the plates in the mold with the unvulcanizedrubber and then These plates are preferably of 9 to vulcanize the rubberand the plate thereto. The point of special importance, however, is thatthese plates are attached to the side of the packing and not to the baseor in the body of the packing. The plates are flat and of considerablelength, and they are attached to the side of the packing so as to in noway weaken the body of the rubber. It will be evident from this thatwhen the projecting prongs c c are passed through the slots of the shoeand turned over at right angles or clenched to secure the rubber in thegroove the strain exerted on the rubber to tear it from the groove willbe exerted against the fiat surfaces of the plates 01 d edgewise andthat it will be difficult to pull the rubber from the plate. If theplate were attached to the base of the rubber, the strain would thenreadily tend to strip the rubber therefrom; but with my method of, as itwere, gluing or vulcanizing the plate to the side wall of the packingthe strain has no tendency to strip off the rubber from the plate, butmerely pull it edgewise along the side wall. It is therefore impossibleto tear the rubber from the groove under any strain that can be exertedbythe wedgin g force of gravel or dirt between the metal of the shoe andthe side wall of the packing.

I have found that when the rubber packing is formed of the samedimensions throughout and the rubber is curved to be inserted in thecurved groove in the shoe the packing is very apt to buckle at thecenter of the toe farthest from the inside wall, and as the greatesttearing strain is naturally at the toe portion of the shoe, whichstrikes the ground first, this buckling is very apt to weaken thefastening at this point and in a short time the rubber strip might berolled or pulled out of the shoe. To prevent this buckling, I thereforelessen the amount of the rubber at the toe, as shown at c. This enablesme to insert the packing smoothly and to render it next to impossiblefor the horse to pull out the packing.

In order to prevent the elongation of the packing under the weight ofthe horse and the consequent buckling up of the strip or its pushing outat the ends, I insert in the soft rubber lengthwise before it isvulcanized a string or stringsf, of non-elastic fibrous ma- ,terial,which strings run lengthwise from end to end of the packing and destroyor minimize its elasticity lengthwise, while in no way affecting itscompression as a cushion for the shoe.

I have illustrated a shoe in which the groove is continuous running fromheel to heel; but it will be understood that a succession of grooves canbe employed instead of a single continuous groove, and I have also shownthree slots and prongs for securing the packing in place; but the numberof these points of attachment may be varied as occasion may demandwithout departing from my invention, which, it will be understood inthis connection, relates to the attachment of the retaining-plate alongthe side wall of the packing.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim, and desire to secureby Letters Patent, is-

1. In a horseshoe, provided with a groove in the under surface, anelastic packing fitted in said groove, and plates secured to the sidewall of the packing, with means for securing said plates to the shoe,substantially as shown and described.

2. In a horseshoe, provided with a groove in the under surface, anelastic packing fitted in said groove, and plates secured to the sidewall of the packing, with prongs on the plates and slots in the base ofthe groove through which said prongs are inserted and clenched to holdthe packing in the groove, substantially as shown and described.

3. In a horseshoe, provided with a continuous groove in the undersurface running from heel to heel, a continuous rubber packing thereforcut away or diminished on its outer face at its middle portion to permitcurving Without buckling to prevent its being torn from the groove, andmeans for securing said packing in place, substantially as shown anddescribed.

4. In a horseshoe, provided with a continuous groovein the under surfacerunning from heel to heel, a rubber packing therefor cut away ordiminished at its middle portion to permit curving without buckling, andplates secured to the side walls of the packing, with prongs on theplates and slots in the base of the groove through which said prongs areinserted and clenched to hold the packingin the groove, substantially asshown and described.

MARTIN J. SINNOTT.

Witnesses:

O. HENDRICKS, II. COMER.

